Hispanic or Latino is currently the largest minority group in the United States, constituting 17% of the population as of 2013 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In Maryland specifically, the 2010 census found 8.3% of the population to be Hispanic or Latino, and as of July 2014, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that 9.2% of the Maryland population is Hispanic or Latino. Notably, the absolute number of Hispanics or Latinos in Maryland doubled during the period 2000-2010, indicating the high level of growth in this segment of the population (http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/24000lk.html). The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) defines Hispanic or Latino as a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin regardless of race (http://www.census.gov/topics/population/hispanic-origin/about.html). For the purposes of this proposal, the terms Latino/a will refer to people of Spanish-speaking countries of the Western hemisphere, and Latino/a immigrants will refer to persons born in one of these countries who have since immigrated to the United States. Notably, this working definition excludes people of Spanish or Brazilian nationality or descent, mainly due to the cultural focus of this investigation.